I Bought A CHEAP High Mileage MINI R53 Supercharged Cooper S!!
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 28 ก.ย. 2024
- I did it again... I bought A CHEAP High Mileage MINI R53 Supercharged Cooper S!! I have always been a fan of the R53 MINI cooper S and now i own one! the MINI Cooper S R53 comes with a 1.6 engine with a supercharger. My car is the facelift model from 2005 which has 170bhp. 0-62 mph is delivered in 7.2 seconds and it tops out at 138mph. The best thing about the R53 MINI Cooper S is that supercharger sound. In this video i share what modifications i want to do to the car and take you our for a drive in the MINI R53 cooper S! what do you think?
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94000 high mileage 🤣🤣
I know. If he did his research, he’d know 94k on a r53 is actually considered kinda low in the market 🤣
@@curtisstroud3 kinda? for me 120k was jackpot find hahah. To be fair most of the maintenance problems are resolved after 150k because half the car is made of replaced parts.
Mine has 150k but I live in Montana, which has a lot of open road compared to the UK, so they’re probably close to on par as far as wear goes
Thought the same 😂😂 Mine has about 142k miles and still runs like a machine.
I'm on my third R53. Most fun car I've ever driven. Love the ride feel. Love the sound. Juuuust enough power.
After having my Abarth stolen I sulked for nearly 3 years before I decided what to do next. I then bought an r53 and love it. I’ve already bought bigger breaks but I need to get some other bits done beforehand, reduced pulley etc. From what I’ve been reading everyone suggests that the supercharger needs to be serviced around the 100k mark. If your going to be having a pulley I’d suggest that you service the supercharger and get the water pump at the same time.
I’m really looking forward to watching your videos, the ups and downs of these little beauties. Mine is a long term project so the mods etc will be over years not months like you.
Good luck and have fun :)
Sorry to hear your car was stolen :(
i bought 2006 r53 in 2012 cost about 8k with 8000+ millages.. by saying in 10 years its down to 3k its cheap because this car is legend.. bought it in London n shipped to Malaysia.. still driving till this day
I've literally just today bought an 03 pre-facelift S - hence looking at youtube vids on them. Totally standard with last owner for 17 years. Never had one, but look forward to sharing some R53 insight. Best of luck with yours - actually looks like a lovely example, like them in that colour scheme.
What I love about the traction controle on these cars is that the light comes on to tell you that the wheels are spinning, it's not going to stop them the car is basically going brace yourself shits about to get real 🤣
LOVED mine, proper tailhappy in the wet like a RWD car for some reason, it was such a laugh! Lohen were my go-to (Just off the MY in Staffordshire), they know every inch of these things. Excited for this one
Great fun these little go karts and my 72 year old mum loves hers especially after the 17% pulley, intercooler,sports cat and map. Enjoy 👍
My R53 is on 140k, engine has been refreshed my 1320 and tuned by them to 240bhp, car runs like its brand new imo. Like others have said 1320 are the best r53 specialists
Thank you!
I've just been to 1320 today. What refresh on your engibe and how much did the rebuild cost of you don't mind me asking?
First performance improvement = Get rid of those wheels! The R85 'S-lites' (aka 'S-heavies') weigh over 25lbs each! They were the heaviest 17" wheel MINI put on the R53s -- by a LOT.
If you want to try a fun experiment, find a set of OEM R50 15" R81 7-hole Imola wheels -- they weighed only 12lbs each and will clear the OEM R53 brakes. Put a set of those on and you will feel the very noticeable difference in performance that a 13lb per wheel weigh reduction can yield.
By the way, 20 year MINI owner here -- R50, R53, R52 JCW, R56S, R55S, F56JCW...
Looking forward to this project!
Thank you! Great info!
I clicked to see what you mean by high mileage, so basically it is 150 000 km. It is hard do explain how "high mileage" can mean many different things to different people. I often see some Alfa 159 diesels with 500 000 km and more and still going strong so saying that this is a hight mileage car is somewhat funny to me although it is, but not sure what is more true that we people here are poor or people there are a little bit spoiled. :)
Opening the video: "oh boy, here we go again..."
Stef first words: "So... we've done it again"
Close enough :v
😂😂😂
I’ve been toying with the idea of getting one of these! Will be keeping track of this project Stef!
Don't forget the polyurethane bushings on the control arms. Colder spark plugs. Are 15" wheels the best for cornering anybody?
Dude that supercharger whine is too cool!!! Another car that I don't think the US gets offered here
Cheers man
I'm in the US and have an 05 mini S. Beautiful whine. I love watching videos of ppl driving this car bc, without fail, the driver grins ear to ear. Most fun I've ever had driving a car. Close 2nd was my 99 Eclipse.
94,000 with full service history ... just worn in mate 💪
Fantastic cars absolutely brilliant fun.
Mines currently for sale.
Hi good luck with new project just love your co presenter hope he increases your views lovely wee guy.👍👍👍🐶🐶🐶
He’s a little legend :)
Just bought my first r53 this summer, its amazing and i love it more every day, the last owner had some bumps so the paint need some love. Hope to restore it so it can shine like new again. Best of luck to you, and cant wait to see what you will do to it. Maybe even give me some ideas! Haha
I bought one of these last year to be used as a weekend toy/track car, it was cheap with 130k on the clock, i removed the supercharger to change the oil on it and also fitted a 17% reduction pulley to it with colder sparkplugs, then had the cat back exhaust fitted plus intake mods, had it remapped to sort the fueling and its a different car, i put some HSD monopro coilovers on it and changed the alloys for 17" with nankang ns2r's semi slick tyres fitted, now its like its on rails, the back end can be a bit iffy in the damp/wet roads so be careful of that :).
Yeah will do the same with a charger service and pulley in one go
Cool! Can't wait to see the progress you'll make on this car.
Thanks!
Looks like you’ve got a great car there Stef. Lovely sound as well. My only complaint I’ve got about it is the ironically sounding name. I would have preferred the name to stay with the aptly named original. Otherwise great, thanks again for sharing your experiences. Regards, Bob M. South Wales
Great purchase, I love my R56 JCW but have a soft spot for the R53s. Maybe it's worth getting on a R53 owners groups on fb!
Yeah will join the group. I’m sure lots of info there!
Tuis is the very modern Mini✊😍✌👍
Proud owner of 1 for 3 months now!
Nice!
Cool buy! ;-) My Student had an R53 GP2! It was amazing ;-)
Ah a GP2 would be epic!
R53 was the original GP. GP2 was R56 and a much more refined car than its predecessor. And a lot more costly to maintain.
Hey Stef, Why not use the same tuner that Peter, Petrol Ped uses?, Lohen MINI.
They seem to be the best in the UK.
Nice MINI! I can't wait to see videos on your mods.
I’ve already had a chat with Pete :) will likely give Lohen a call
Change the dipstick!
Lohen Mini are the best tuner. 👍
Looking good! I’ve owned a 2003 r53 and feel bad that I sold it. I’m thinking about buying one again. What are your thoughts about buying an r53 as a investment? Do you think the r53 will be more of a collectors item in about 15 years? I live in the Netherlands, where a lot of minis (especially imported ones) are for sale. But I’ll go for an original ‘dutch’ one, since the imported cars can be ex-damaged cars.
Got my 2002 with brand new boxed mods, service history, 100K miles etc £1500
Solid buy!
Cannot wait to see mods on there 👍
🙌🙌🙌
Not really that high mileage for the year tbh, but I do love these R53 S's - I have a 2009 Mini R56 with 145,000 miles on the odo, lowly 1.4 First....ahem with steel wheels, but still a fun car to chuck about.
🙌🙌🙌
Michelin pilot sport tyres will transform the R53 into a beast.
Defo want to change from the Pirelli’s
High mileage???? My dawg, I’m looking at one with 200k+ miles 😂
I own an 02 R53, love it to death, stupidest car to work on though. Replaced window regulators and power steering "pump" around 3 times in the last 6 years, stupid bmw quality that's for sure, but the ride is always super enjoyable.
Don't get me started on the brakes... still haven't gotten around to an upgrade to the R56 parts, so stupid how quickly the pads fade.
Mintex racing pads make a huge difference on the standard r53 set up...dot4 fluid and Hel lines,again improve hugely...but they just make the set up satisfactory, not...epic
The Eaton Roots supercharger sound great in these cars. Shame the Chrysler engine was so unreliable.
Love the charger whine :)
It might be because I’m from the US but 90k miles isn’t that many to me my 2013 cooper s countryman is nearing 106k and it’s still great lmao
Brilliant little cars, i absolutely adore mine. Does yours have the LSD gearbox?
It does have the lsd :)
Perfect spec then 👍
So guys there is this mini 2004 180k km, cooper s like this, but the guy said it is leaking oil, so every month he has to add a little bit. He make me 2750€ should I buy it? Is the oil leak gonna be a problem?
High mileage at 18 yrs old ???? Not in my book
Does anyone know what these little machines do agains a fiesta at?
"i bought a cheap £3600 r53" lol
The least reliable, but fun car there is. Would've picked one up if it weren't for the enormous list of potential issues these cars tend to suffer.
I know most people don't see it this way, but if you assume a typical 10k a year, a 16year old one should be on 160k as average miles. So yours is in fact low miles.
To be fair that’s a good point!
Lohen or the B road hunting club
“I bought a cheap, high mileage r53”
Proceeds to buy one of the more expensive low mileage r53’s on the market 🤣
Lol!
3.5k isn't cheap for one of these. Buy a 2k one to go with the click bait.
id get one but my mini one is so unreliable so properly wont get one
Got mine for $1200 with 260k miles did a head gasket change and runs like a beast
Great looking car, I've owned a few R53 minis, still have one and I look after 4 more of my mates. Absolutely great cars, for tuning I wouldn't take it anywhere other than 1320 mini in st neots. What Scott and tom don't know about these cars isn't worth knowing, they are the only guys in the uk who can tune these properly. Orranje if you want parts oli and team are great used them for years. If you want 2nd parts then Jason at millsys autos in nuneaton be best place to go. Mods wise get the front bushes on the trailing arms swooped to poly bushes make it handle far better, 17% reduction pulley with a air tec or GRS intercooler swop header tank for an alloy one, ditch the run flates and the dual mass flywheel. Also when you have the passenger side wheel off look into where drive shaft goes into the box just above it is a sticker, if it has BKE it's a facelift box if its BKL its factory LSD (25%) thats gearbox to have. Also steer clear of the MSD coilpack bad news with those, just have a Google you'll see. 1320 make over 700bhp on the stock coil pack. Good luck with the R53 I'm sure you'll have fun
Agreed, 1320Mini Only place to take r53's they are the best in the mini game, defiantly go for a 15% or 17% pulley!, Airtec or GRS intercooler i agree with too. Orranje Stealth box induction or Airtec kit, Don't Recommend any Ram induction Kits does not cool the car down enough and no performance gains. I would not Recommend GTT for tuning the car, they are shamed in the Mini World check all the car forums we do not speak of that company in the Forums! Coming from an R53Owners Club Member!!!
Hi Stephen, Aron I will be moving to Dublin and want to by some small car for daily drives if I need too, but mainly for the weekend trips, I read that Irish second hand market is complete garbage, where should I look if I wanted to buy a car from UK?
Great info! Thank you!
Start with the brakes because the stock ones start fading quickly! I went for R56 S brakes, braided lines, EBC pads + discs. The control arm bushings tend to wear out completely so you want to replace them with polyurethane ones (I chose Whiteline). I also went for a Milltek non res exhaust. Fantastic addition to the whole experience. Now all I need is a reduced pulley, CAI and remap! (And maybe a set of lightweight wheels with semi slicks for track use in the future)
Thanks! Really useful!!
How relaible are these with superchargers .??
Went to JCW brakes on my first brake replacement. Lovely. Eliminates 15" wheels from the menu.
Loved my R53, since selling it the Abarth has been the closest giggle when driving I've had.
A reduced pulley, GP intercooler, M3 mini induction, KW V1 coilovers and a JCW exhaust (that was hard to get hold of) and it was a mad little thing.
Once modded flick off the TC for every drive, I found it kicked in when pulling out of junctions if not which can be worrying
They are a lot of fun for sure! Looking forward to modding my car :)
@@StefABtv Hi what's the advantage of having a reduced pulley, if you dont mind me asking, Cheers.
I’ve always had a soft spot for these, so much car for the money. I just wished they designed better seats and steering wheels on these. The sound is always good though, even exhaust tones. A guy near my work has one and it pops and crackles such a nice note
The park lane (I think that's what they're called) leather seats are a great option in these. Very comfortable seats. They're in my R53
High mileage 94k, you drunk, that’s not even run in,,,,, oh and xenons were on all chilli pack cars from 2002
Had a 2004 cooper s for past 6 years. Will NEVER NEVER sell it. I wouldn’t touch it apart from reduced pulley and may be a supercharger service at 100k. That whine is something else. I very rarely listen to radio or a cd. Enjoy
Not really high mileage, my minis out here with nearly 150k miles
mine with 200k 😅
If you think 130k is really high mileage on a 20 year old car then you don’t really know a lot about cars.
Common time for these to hit the market when coming close to the 100k service which includes the supercharger. I used 1320 mini near st.neots who are incredible and got them to do the service and while supercharger was off a new pulley fitted at the same time reduced 17 percent. colder spark plugs needed at the same time and any decent garage will advise you
90k miles on a 17 year old car is not high milage
Fantastic to see a TH-camrs who does not buy a Supercar to gain content,this was my first car I am now 70 and you have rekindled my desire to buy one
Thanks Derek!
Do you really consider 130k to be high mileage ?
Well used I guess lol
@@StefABtv I'm sure that you'll have a cracking time with this r53, keep up the good work stef.
im buying one with 200000 miles on it hahah "90000 high milege" ur funny
I just bought my first R53 last week. It had one female owner from new and a full service history from a local german car specialist. The history came in a plastic bag with about 30+ receipts. It has loads of extras (pan roof, full leather H & K CD changer) and the chilli pack. It only has 67k miles and I paid £2200. Cant believe my luck but it does need a couple of jobs. I just stumbled across your video today and your smile is very similar to min after driving it for the first time ! Great video and I also like the tuning one !
My honest opinion...your success as a U-Tuber...you have walked away from your roots, that has put you on the map, stay loyal to Fiat Abarth, and your followers will support you and follow you to hell and back. Your information on other makes is however informative, but is us followers...are mostly interested on the Abarth. Your signature is with the Fiat Abarth. Get yourself a personal Fiat Abarth, and we will, the U-Tube community will be there for you. You are well know in your neck of the woods, but here in the good U.S of A love you for when you showed loyalty and inthusim from you your infamous pocket giant killer, your well kept Abarth. Go back to your Abarth roots but continue your journey with other project cars. Remember , loyalty to a product you understand very well has it's rewards. Que Viva Thee Abarth!
There will be abarth content coming to the channel soon. 🙌 also appreciate the feedback but actually my growth as a TH-camr has come from diversification. I love Abarth as a brand snd I’m waiting to see what they release in future. If I just made content on the same car I wouldn’t grow a larger audience.
High mileage at 94k?! Your having a laugh! The last high mileage car I bought was a Vauxhall Insignia tourer (estate) 4 years old 154,000. Immediately remapped to 195bhp. Changed the original clutch and flywheel at 180,000 sold to my eldest at 198,000 after many trips across Italy (was living on the Adriatic). My eldest has since sold it to my youngest with 230,000 on the clock about a year ago. Still going well.
Looking at getting one of these myself in the very near future, when I seen high mileage I was expecting 130 odd thousand, 93k is pretty good given its age, will keep an eye on this and maybe when I get mine we could do a video comparing the 2?
Overall do you prefer this or abarth 124 and why?
124 for the fun factor as it’s real wheel drive. Much more mods available for the R53 though and it’s still a cracking little car for the money.
You’re just a head of me .. I’m buying a perfect r53 and just researching. So..
Maintenance .. check water pump, it’s seal, the water pipe behind it ages and leaks. The sump and valve cover seals, the water tank.
Performance ... before a pulley fit the better intercooler. These cars run hot. So got the intercooler you’ll get more bang for your existing buck. Then the pulley. Then the little ignition pack .. upgrade that too. Oh and fit a colder plug. Apparently the inlet and exhausts are restrictive. So a new cold air intake with a sports exhaust supposedly makes a feel feelable difference too. Let’s see what you do.
Let’s see what I do. Anyway you’ve got my subscription buddy. Let’s have a chat as we go through and good luck.
Ah the memories! I had 4 of these, last one being a GP1 (my fav car of all time). Please check the power steering pump and cover. Also check the radiator reservoir tank. As for mods / tuning - dial in a bit more snap crackle pop from the exhaust. 16 inch wheels with higher profile non-runflats are the most comfortable, although eighteens always look best. Wish you many happy miles!
Thank you for the info!
Was about to comment the same thing, just had to have the power steering pump done on mine
That's almost identical to mine! 😀
Bought it March last year for c.£1400
105k, recent clutch, needed tlc rather than any meaningful work.
Put tyres and brakes on it so far. MOT time next!!
I have an r53 S with just 26K and had no intention of ever parting with it.
But along comes a 30K mile N18 JCW convertible....
What's a Mini fanatic to do?
Got one for $1,000, non running. Timing slipped, broke a rod, messed up the head. Clean interior and straight body though. 05 S manual, British racing green. Guess I have to race it, it's in the name. 🤷♂
That’s a low mileage r53….check for supercharger service, cam belt, water pump….try 1320 Mini for tuning advice. That’s not cheap by the way….I’d want a full Aero Kit, heated seats, pan roof, heated front screen at least for that. Good luck with it though ❤
I bought a Convertible one with 127000 miles .Gears are stiff gonna try lubrication to the lingage first and will.go from there.Can wait to getting it ready for mot and drive
It.All for £450
The r53 is at its core a drivers car, raw in handling and suspension feel, the whine of the supercharger; I love my car
Paid $3800 for my 2003 darksilver r53 with 90,000 miles- which is low mileage not high for a car that’s 20 years old. You really don’t want a car that’s been sitting most it’s life. l have been installing facelift parts on it and plan to put a 19% supercharger pulley and 50 shot nitrous and possibly tune it on e85 if I move since there’s no e85 nearby.
I own an r53 myself, love the car! mine has the IMASAF full exhaust system fitted and i'd definitely do that. more rare than milltek and in my opinion sounds better too!
Looking forward to this, I bought an F56 cooper S last Feb after driving diesel saloons for years due to work commitments and kids, was like being 20 again, I love it every time I get to drive it!
I had a factory Jcw r53 with the 210hp upgrade, i would check or replace coolant reservoir, ditch the run flats for a decent set of tyres transforms the way the car rides and handles. Decent set of discs pads as stock aren’t great. I would upgrade the stock exhaust for the jcw sounds great 👍.
Enjoy, they are a lot of fun!
Occasionally, all of the wheel speed related indicator lights come on and stay on. I've found 3 out of 5 times, about 15 minutes of "auto-cross" on a dirt woods road will correct that.
100K miles isnt high mileage LOL, its just the first major service point im not sure why everyone thinks its the end of the car once it hits 100K. then again its high mileage if its driven like you drive it which they probably all are
90k isn't high mileage 😂😂😂 I once got a Mk5 golf on 283,000 miles, that's high
Nice car, killer road tax. Liked the gen 1 cars, gen 2 less, gen 3 hate them. Ultimately though just don’t like them enough to hand £340 to the government every year even when the car costs peanuts.
Lol yeah it is a bit steep! 😂
Cool car, always wanted one of these! Also really enjoying the cheap car content!
Thanks dude 🙌
Fun plus! You should compare notes with George Austers (TH-cam) 🙂👍
You will need a cam to get past 200bhp mate .
Only place to for a tune is 1320 mini..
Love R53 minis before they became 'oversized' with the later models.. Decided on an Abarth though, just too many minis on the road so i wanted something a little less common place :-)
I have this car same colour... Nicer wheels... .. Mileage is half yours and serviced properly from day ...
Got glass roof
Still goes like a rocket
I am a HUGE MINI fan, and so happy to see you are too with all your MINI content! Can't wait to see what you get up to with this little pocket rocket. Love your videos!
Thank you!!!
130k isn’t high mileage lol great video though. I should be getting one next month 🤞🏼
I loved my R53.
You should take can of oil wth you at all time. It slurps oil..
It’s not high mileage 😂pretty average hasn’t got a clue ffs🤦♂️
I’d advise getting the supercharger serviced as it needs to be done by 100k . Mod a mini are worth chatting to for any work and upgrades.
They can supply abs fit any parts . Our R52 was brilliant. I fitted the Forge style intake on ours and took the cold air feed from the bulkhead. The supercharge whine was ridiculous 👌🏻😂
I also fitted a full stainless system to it just before we sold it. That was crazy loud but the pops out of it were very angry 🥴🤷🏼♂️😂
Haha mega mate. Thanks on advice on the charger 🙌
I had one 260 0000 miles was running fine, cooper s 2005 , I had it years
I love the mini stuff got a gen3 Jcw had a r53 and loved that. Would advise to put a clutch in it most of then have gone or started slipping by that mileage. There loads of stuff you can buy but I would advise you for power to remove the supercharger send it off to gtt tuning to have the fully £900 rebuild they put a new pulley updated bearing and gears and set all the backlash in the rotors in the chargers and makes it stronger then from the factory. All so it the little thing like you can buy the lightened pulleys form lohen that make the car spin the charger sooner and faster. Cams in the r53 are really good for bigger power and when you have a clutch done I advise to buy every ball joint for the front but buy the roll centre adjusts for when you lower it will bring the hub back up so don’t kill your box or shafts and polly bush the anti roll bar and rear arm bushes only if you have it all out on the floor do it all once.
Thanks Elliott. Really helpful!
I had a cooper s r53 with 200k miles that drove perfectly still
Welcome to the 53 gang!! Take it to Steve Farman at S works in Kent. Good guy!! Or 1320 are good peeps. If ur up in brum, go see Tj monkeez!! 👌💯 enjoy
🙌🙌🙌
I always like those minis
High mileage my ass! My r53 has 170000 miles and still going
I’ve just bought one my self unfortunately a lemon , it costs me £1800 in repairs 3 days after. In terms of mods new top mount , 17% reduced pulley , colder plugs and your be around the 200hp mark in terms of tuning try 1320 mini, however you don’t need a map unless you change the injectors (then you may as well do a cam ) your be at about 230hp
Thanks for the info! Ouch £1800 in 3 days is a lot. I’m sure I’m going to get a big bill soon 🤣
Feel you mate.. bought one and 2 days aftervthe engine was gone, 3500 pound in repairs..